The Carolina Panthers have grown by leaps and bounds the last couple of seasons. However, when you start out digging your way out of hell, you have long way to go before you can be considered truly competitive again.
That's the state of affairs for the Panthers as the 2026 season approaches. While they've clearly out of the basement, they're still considered below average compared to the rest of the league.
According to an anonymous polling of NFL executives by The Athletic, Carolina is only the 10th-best team in the NFC this year. At least one believes they're ready to take the next step, though—provided quarterback Bryce Young can pick up where he left off in 2025:
"Carolina is ready to take a step if the quarterback (Bryce Young) does what he did
at the end of last year, because they have improved greatly on defense," the voter ranking the Panthers seventh said.
What that next step means exactly is open to interpretation, given the fact that Carolina played both up and down to its opponents last year. Although the Panthers did challenge the likes of the Los Angeles Rams, Green Bay Packers and, to an extent, the Seattle Seahawks, they also dropped games to the Arizona Cardinals and New Orleans Saints/
Consistency is probably the one dynamic that they need the most, especially when it comes to Young's performance from week to week. If he can break out of the funk that had him posting 12 games of 200 passing yards or less, almost anything is possible for this team.
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: NFL execs vote Panthers outside top 10 NFC teams
